If you like fresh, organic produce but don’t like the high grocery store prices, you should consider planting your own veggie garden—after all, you can’t get any closer to your kitchen table than your own backyard.

10 Easy Steps to Get Growing

Choose the right location in your yard

Choose a location for the garden that gets lots of sun, has enough space for what you plan to grow and is close to your water supply. You also want level ground to prevent erosion and also just to be easier to maintain.

Select your veggies

Decide what veggies you want to grow based on your climate, space, your tastes and your level of expertise. If you are new to gardening, you might want to start with some easier crops, like carrots, beans, cucumbers, peppers and lettuce.

Prepare the soil

Mix compost and natural fertilizers into your garden to condition the soil for your plants. Gardening in good soil will help ensure success!

Check planting dates

Growing conditions and ripening cycles are different depending on the plant and the season, so you should not sow all the seeds at the same time. Planting dates can be found on the seed packets. Review the ideal conditions for each veggie you want to plant before creating your gardening schedule

Plant the seeds

Place your seeds or plants into the soil, following the depth and spacing directions on the seed packet

Add water

Gently spray the garden with water to keep the soil moist throughout the growing season. Using a spray nozzle on your hose, can help you create a gentle rain like mist, so that you don’t ruin your plants by watering too harshly.

Keep the weeds out

Mulching is the most effective way to prevent weeds. Add a layer of mulch to your garden to keep the weeds from growing. If weeds do grow in your garden, be sure to pull them out by the roots so they don’t just grow back .